August, 2010

  • Top 3 Costly Email Marketing Mistakes

    Posted Aug 30th, 2010 By in Business, Content Marketing, Email Marketing With | 4 Comments

    If you use email as part of your marketing strategy, deliverability is probably among your top concerns. After all, emails need to arrive in the inbox before they can effectively generate leads. Unfortunately, there are a few gaffes that can cost you when you send your next email marketing message.

    Here of the top three mistakes:

    1. Sending to an Old List

    It’s tough to let go of people on your email list but the consequence of sending to people who haven’t heard from you in over six months is quite severe. If you email 1,000 people and two hit the “Report Spam” button, the odds of your other emails being delivered drops drastically. Yes, it’s that serious! The 0.1% industry guideline is mandated from ISPs and burdened by email service providers.

    To overcome this, do NOT email people you have not had recent contact with (we’re talking longer than six months). Email permission typically expires after about nine months and spam complaints go up exponentially after six months. Alternatively, you can use a reconnect campaign via direct mail like a postcard or letter to help “ignite” their permission again. Permission is key.

    2. Sending the Wrong Message at the Wrong Time

    Over the years, small business users grow comfortable sending to their entire list. This can irritate recipients who don’t want every single announcement from your business. What do these people do when they receive a poorly-targeted/timed message? They unsubscribe and report spam. Tough love, eh? This isn’t the time for list scrubbing – it’s the time for targeted, segmented and truly relevant messages to be delivered to your recipients.

    The solution is to narrow your broadcasts to smaller groups in your database. Leverage technology that allows you to segment the interest, needs and previous activity of your subscribers so you only send to the ones who expect your email and are interested in getting specific and targeted information from you.

    3. Infrequent, Inconsistent Contact

    Similar to above, sending infrequent, unexpected emails to your subscribers can be just as damaging as sending too often. Email recipients often expect to be notified on a monthly basis, maybe more or less frequent depending on your expectations when they opted-in. Exercise discipline when maintaining a quality email relationship with your subscribers.

    If you plan on changing your email delivery schedule, let them know. Some marketers allow subscribers to self-segment into “Daily,” “Weekly” or “Monthly” communications. This reduces spam complaints and allows recipients to receive messages when they want them (not when you do).

    A Costly Mistake

    The cost of making these email mistakes will vary by the type of business you have. Undoubtedly, it will often cost you valuable email relationships as people unsubscribe. If you don’t adhere to best practices, your email service provider could drop you for spam.

    There is a laundry list of to-dos and don’t-dos out there but it really comes down to one thing: respect. Respect your subscribers’ needs and interests and they will reciprocate. These top three mistakes small business email marketers do are often overlooked until after they’ve shot themselves in the foot. Consider this advice before you send your next email marketing broadcast.

    To learn more about email marketing best practices, download a free report about Email Marketing 2.0.

  • Mirna Bard to Speak on Social Media Strategy in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico

    Posted Aug 26th, 2010 By in Social Media, Social Networking, Twitter With | 3 Comments

    Residents of Mexico are calling it a “Social Marketing Tsunami,” and I am calling it a well-deserved vacation, haha!  Tweet to be Heard, the international social marketing conference of the season will be held in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico from October 21 to October 24, 2010.

    MexicoIf you want to learn everything you need to know about social media and you want to have a little fun doing it, then this is the conference to attend.  I will be sharing the stage with some great speakers:  Trey Pennington, Richard Snyder, William Michael, Victor Garcia and Lynne Barstow.

    I am extremely honored to be speaking at this spectacular event.  When I was invited through a direct message on Twitter a couple months ago, my reaction was purely selfish because I just thought about ocean, sand, sun – a mini-vacation in the tropics, yeah :D .  I mean come on, have you ever heard of a conference that plans for a siesta (a nap break) in the middle of the day, and all kinds of outdoor and evening activities planned through midnight?  Admit it, you would be a little selfish too if you were invited.  Right?  And, who says you can’t mix business with pleasure?

    Event director, Robert Dry is planning an amazing schedule that is attracting people from around the globe.  He hand-selected each speaker based on their knowledge and expertise in social media.  “I solicited input from my group of influencers by asking them who they considered to be gurus of social marketing and they came back to me with a small group of about eight well-known presenters that they would want to hear speak.  I did online research of each possible speaker’s Twitter posts, websites and other related accounts to further fine tune the list of speakers to just those that had an ÏT factor and extreme knowledge of the online world,” mentions Dry.

    I don’t want to give too much away.  If you are really tempted to join the fun, let the schedule help you make the decision: http://www.tweettobeheard.com.

    And by the way, if I wasn’t so transparent online, this amazing opportunity would not have come my way.  This is why it so essential for every business owner to make time for their online marketing.  You never know when the next tropical vacation, media coverage, or new customer opportunity is going to come along!

    Arriba! Arriba!

  • 6 Ways to Let Google Optimize Your Business

    Posted Aug 25th, 2010 By in Google, Internet Marketing, Search Engine Marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media With | 3 Comments

    It’s easy to take the idea of search engine optimization for granted. Yeah, the marketing landscape is abuzz with all things SEO today, but did you even know what the term “search engine optimization” meant ten years ago? The term has no doubt covered a lot of ground in a short period of time.

    But let’s forget about SEO for a brief moment (gasp!). Trust me, it’ll be OK.

    We spend a lot of time and money trying to make our businesses look good to Google. Maybe it’s time we listen to what Google already likes about our business and do something about that.

    “What the hell does that mean?” Let me explain via a personal experience.

    Shortly after I started blogging a few years ago, I experienced a less-than-optimal situation at my local gym. With one post, I ranted about it. Soon thereafter, I decided to try to be a small part of the solution instead, so I wrote a post filled with my own gym marketing tips. It was a short-lived and somewhat related departure from my normal topics (namely, marketing leadership), so I immediately returned to my regularly scheduled programs.

    Here’s the deal: I’m not a gym marketing expert. I have expertise in certain areas of marketing, and I have frequented lots of gyms over the years, but I’ve never really combined the two. I was simply just giving my unsolicited advice on how gym owners could make things work a little better.

    However, Google doesn’t quite see it this way. In Google’s eyes, I’m an authority on just about any phrase related to gym marketing. I get a minimum of 20 visits a day from people looking specifically for gym marketing tips. It wasn’t my plan, and it wasn’t on purpose. I’m not sure if the post is constructed well or if it’s simply a void niche, but Google has decided what I have to say on this topic matters.

    Which got me thinking ….

    How to Leverage Surprising Inbound Keyword Phrases

    Let’s face it: expertise is in the eye of the beholder. If Google thinks I know what I’m talking about, and comments and emails and other analytics confirm that I know what I’m talking about, then maybe I know what I’m talking about. But how do I take advantage of such an unexpected gift?

    I don’t know the answer to this question, but my pondering has led me to these six options, and I’d love to hear more.

    1. Accept advertising for the specific post. Any niche is going to have its major players. If Google’s looking to you when it comes to certain keywords, then these top dogs probably should, too. If you’re entire site isn’t dedicated to the topic, then run-of-site advertising probably doesn’t make sense to them. But an ad per post probably would. Email them and make them aware of the traffic you’re pulling for specific keyword phrases, and then give them a price. You could do banners or simple text links. This is probably the easiest and most immediate way to leverage this traffic. In my example, I could go find software programs for gyms or even authors who write on the topic of gym marketing.
    2. Build your list. Forget cash, at least directly. Build your email list or subscriber level with a special, targeted call to action within the post. Or set up an autoresponder that expands on the specific topic. Then, hopefully, your delivery of valuable content over time will build trust, which in turn could lead to business.
    3. Create an information product. eBooks, white papers, videos, automated presentations, video, podcast, whatever. If your ideas on the niche have legs, let ‘em loose by creating a more robust information product. You could give it away and leverage the list-building and linking to your site as your form of currency, or you could sell these items at a reasonable price. Just be sure to link the title of the product to the keywords that are most often bringing people to the site. Might as well give them exactly what they’re looking for.
    4. Use affiliate links that make sense. Whether you’re keeping it easy with a simple Amazon.com affiliate program or something a little more robust with a service like Commission Junction, affiliates oftentimes take a lot of the grunt work out of selling. Find some products that fit your niche and just post them. Or you could find creators of products that would make sense for you to peddle and offer to set up an affiliate program for them. Then everybody’s winning.
    5. Manufacture your own hard good. Go ahead and go old school. Make an actual, tangible product, be it a book, a widget or whatever. No need to feel confined to the online space if an offline product is what people are looking for.
    6. Build a company around it. If you’re really feeling ballsy, and if the niche is really ripe for the picking, and if you’re passionate about the niche, then maybe there’s a business waiting for you here. Just be careful: opportunities like this are great at taking your focus off of what you’re really good at it. Make sure you enjoy centering your business around this new niche, or else you’ll be miserable.

    Remember to harness and harvest the gifts that Google gives you every single day. Google will let you know where you really stick out. If you can figure out a way to leverage it, you’re a step ahead.

    I have no idea which of the above ideas I’ll move forward with, if any. If you were me, what would you do? What other ideas do you have for ways to leverage surprising niche keyword traffic?

    Guest Author: Brett Duncan offers common sense for marketing leaders at his blog, MarketingInProgress.com. He spends his days as Senior Director of Global Online Solutions for Mannatech, and his nights chasing a crazy little boy around the house in between brief moments of cheering on the Texas Rangers. He lives in Irving, Texas. Sign up for his free newsletter now if you like practical, thought-provoking marketing tips.

  • 5 Incredible Lead Generation Ideas

    Posted Aug 23rd, 2010 By in Business, Content Marketing, Email Marketing, Internet Marketing With | 6 Comments

    As an expert in your field, you’ve got a ton of really important information in your head. But you’ve got to get it out of your head and into some useful format for lead generation. Information is the heart and soul of marketing, so you’ve got to have some idea about the products you want to develop as part of your overall strategy. Let’s talk about the top five.

    1. White Papers

    “White paper” is the corporate, fancy-pants term for an online article. A white paper usually ranges from two to three pages and stands alone as an item customers or prospects can download. White papers work great as a lead generation tool when you ask prospects to provide their email address in exchange for your valuable”"yet free”"information.

    2. Free Reports

    A free report is like a white paper, just a bit bigger. From a lead generation standpoint, it holds more value than a white paper and is usually several pages long. Free reports are great products to use as an add-on to online purchases. “Buy Product X and receive three Free Reports!” You can also use them like white papers and offer them as free downloads in exchange for contact information.

    3. E-Books

    E-books are the killer product that can create a lead generation bonanza! Like a real book, an e-book is going to be long…at least 50 pages. The fact that it’s a real book makes the perceived value huge. If the copy inviting prospects to download your e-book is well-written and compelling, you can generate several thousand new leads from this one lead generation tool alone.

    4. Audio Reports

    An audio report helps prospects get a feel for what you and your company are all about. It’s a way for prospects to talk to you about doing business without really taking to you. Using audio reports as part of your campaign can boost brand loyalty and help you prospects commit to a sale. If you are well known in your industry – or if you can hire someone who is – you have the power to generate a LOT of leads using audio reports.

    5. Webinars

    No joke. Webinars can drive an endless stream of customers to your business. Like audio reports, they give customers a feed for your company. But webinars go way beyond teaser information. The power-punch of the webinar is that it lets you cover the entire sales pitch AND close the deal. Another bonus is that webinars can be recorded. That lets you leverage your time by making the pitch once and then playing the presentation again and again for new groups of prospects. Talk about a time saver!

    How Does It Work?

    Here’s the way it works, in a nutshell.

    • Develop information products.
    • Make the available on your site in exchange for contact information.
    • Send out an announcement to your email list that also creates a sense of urgency.
    • Put tools in place to track downloads and capture new leads.
    • Follow-up with leads to convert them into customers.

    To check out some real lead generation products, download a free report about Email Marketing 2.0.

  • Are You Engaged?

    Posted Aug 18th, 2010 By in Business, Social Media, Social Networking With | 2 Comments

    This is a guest post by Dr. Ivan Misner (Bio is below).

    In engaged in the conversation, that is! OK, OK . . . now that I have your attention, let me explain.

    In my book Truth or Delusion I bring up the point that word-of-mouth marketing is always working, it just may not be working in your favor. Believe it or not, you’re getting word of mouth every day. It just may not be the kind you’re thinking of–the good kind. The thing is, negative word of mouth has legs and the average dissatisfied customer gripes to 11 people about his experience, and these 11 in turn tell five others apiece.

    Therefore, you need to get engaged in the networking process and the resulting conversation by formulating a strategic plan to control what’s being said about you. Among other things, this is done by focusing on good customer service to reduce negative word-of-mouth and ensuring that your marketing message is conveyed accurately so your prospects know what to expect.

    It’s especially important to be engaged in the conversation when it comes to online networking. Take the headline of this blog, for example. Say somebody were to see it, not read the rest of the blog, and then begin posting comments on blogs and social networking sites all over the web claiming that “Ivan Misner has a new blog urging people everywhere to get married!”

    You may be laughing, but occurrences like I just described happen all the time. And guess what? If you’re one of those people who refuses to get involved in “that online/social networking stuff,” then you aren’t engaged in the conversations that are being had about you online. And when somebody says something negative or incorrect about you or your business, you can’t redirect the conversation in a positive direction to save face or correct what’s been wrongly stated about you.

    Whether networking online or face-to-face, the dialogue is going to happen with or without you. The basic point is, if you don’t participate in the conversation, you’re not in control whatsoever. If you do participate, then you can publicly say who you are and steer the conversation in a positive way.

    Check out this blog entry by my friend Dave Goetz, “They are Laughing at You.” It’s a perfect illustration of everything I’ve talked about in this blog and it tells a GREAT story about a college professor who refused to engage his students in any way as he endlessly lectured to them for hours. It’s no surprise that the students found a way to engage each other in conversation during class but the professor lost all control of what topics were being focused on as well as what was being said . . . Like I said, the dialogue will happen with or without you.

    Guest Author: Called the “father of modern networking” by CNN, Dr. Ivan Misner is a New York Times bestselling author. He is the Founder and Chairman of BNI the world’s largest business organization. His newest book, Networking Like a Pro, can be viewed at www.IvanMisner.com. You can also read more of his valuable information on the Neworking Now Blog.

  • Page 1 of 3123»

Copyright © 2011 MirnaBard.com